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Tasks: Become an expert on the British System of Government

Here, you will find tasks that allow you to study the British system of government in more depth.

Become an expert:

What to do:

  1. Divide the class into groups and pick one of the seven topics from the list. Research your topic. Use relevant sources.

  2. Once you have gathered all the information you need, share your knowledge with your classmates.

  3. Organise the classroom so that you have seven different tables with one expert at each table. The rest of the class move around from table to table talking to the experts.

  4. Take turns until everyone has visited every expert, and everyone has had the chance to be the expert.

  5. Write a text about the political system in the UK to show what you have learnt.

Topics:

  • the UK government.

  • the parliaments in Wales, Scotland, and Northern Ireland.

  • political parties in the UK.

  • the role of the House of Commons in the UK.

  • the role of the House of Lords in the UK.

  • the role of the monarch in the UK.

  • the role of the UK Supreme Court and the UK's 'constitution'. (The UK does not have a constitution in the sense of a specific document. What do they have instead?)

Write:

Choose one of the tasks and write a text based on what you have learned by being an expert and talking to experts.

  1. Explain the system of separation of powers in the United Kingdom.

  2. Explain the political system in the United Kingdom.

  3. Parliament is the most important part of the political system in the UK: discuss.

Compare:

Work in groups and compare the system of government in the UK with the system of government in another English-speaking country. Point out similarities and differences.

Look at:

  • separation of powers

  • elections

  • head of state

You may choose any English-speaking country to compare the UK's system to, but we suggest India, Nigeria, South Africa, New Zealand, Australia, Canada, or the United States of America.

Research:

What political issues are on the agenda in the UK at the moment? Choose one issue, research it, and explain it to the class in a presentation, audio-recording, or film.

Suggested issues

Here is a short list of issues that are often debated in the UK. If you haven't found a different issue on your own, you can choose one of these.

  • the future of the National Health Service (NHS)

  • class divide in the educational system in the UK

  • the future of the monarchy

  • poverty in the UK

  • independence for Scotland

  • the UK's relationship with Europe

Make a quiz:

Make a quiz where the topic is the political system in the United Kingdom and present this to your classmates. Include minimum ten questions in your quiz. Choose your level of difficulty, from easy to fiendish.

Further study:

The Magna Carta of 1215 was the origin of democracy in the United Kingdom. The document guaranteed some rights for some citizens. These rights were: protection from illegal imprisonment, access to swift justice, and limitations on feudal payments to the Crown. While the document itself only guaranteed the rights of the Church and some barons, it limited the sovereign's power, and was a first step towards guaranteeing citizens' rights.

Find out more about the Magna Carta by following the link to the British Library's resources about the Magna Carta. Use the information to make a factsheet about the Magna Carta.

Link to resources about the Magna Carta on the British Library's website

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